4.  The applicant is a private small-scale trading company which has its registered office in Yerevan.
5.  On 29 January 2001 the Tax Inspectorate conducted an inspection of the applicant company's accounts. As a result of this inspection, on 2 April 2001 the Ministry of State Revenue (ՀՀ պետական եկամուտների նախարարություն) made an assessment, according to which the applicant company's tax arrears amounted to 3,797,281 Armenian drams (AMD) (approx. 5,400 euros (EUR)), including surcharges and fines prescribed by the relevant tax laws.
6.  On an unspecified date, the Yerevan City Prosecutor's Office (Երևան քաղաքի դատախազություն) and the Tax Inspectorate of the Myasnikyan District of Yerevan (Երևանի Մյասնիկյանի տարածքային հարկային տեսչություն) instituted proceedings against the applicant company, claiming that it had failed to meet its tax obligations in an appropriate and timely manner and seeking to recover the above tax arrears.
7.  On 13 July 2001 the Kentron and Nork-Marash District Court of Yerevan (Երևան քաղաքի Կենտրոն և Նորք-Մարաշ համայնքների առաջին ատյանի դատարան) decided against the applicant company.
8.  On an unspecified date, the applicant company lodged an appeal with the then Commercial Court of Appeal (ՀՀ տնտեսական գործերով վերաքննիչ դատարան). The applicant company also requested that payment of the court fee (known as State fee) be deferred. In his request, the manager of the applicant company submitted, inter alia, that the company was experiencing financial problems and that he was the company's sole employee.
9.  On 31 August 2001 the Commercial Court of Appeal granted the applicant company's request for deferral and admitted the appeal.
10.  Following the reform of the court system introduced in Armenia on 11 September 2001 which brought about the establishment of the Commercial Court (ՀՀ տնտեսական դատարան), the applicant company's case was transferred to be examined by that court.
11.  On 5 November 2001 the Commercial Court decided to leave the authorities' claim unexamined on the ground that the plaintiffs had failed to appear. In its decision, the Commercial Court levied a court fee on the Tax Inspectorate in the amount of AMD 189,864.05 (approx. EUR 370).
12.  It appears that the proceedings were resumed on an unspecified date.
13.  On 24 December 2001 the Commercial Court decided, at the prosecutor's request, to take measures aimed at securing the claim, freezing the applicant company's property and monetary assets in the amount of AMD 3,797,281.
14.  On an unspecified date, the applicant company lodged a counterclaim with the Commercial Court, seeking to have the 2 April 2001 assessment ruled unlawful. The applicant company requested that the payment of the court fee be deferred on the same grounds as before.
15.  On 18 January 2002 the Commercial Court granted the applicant company's request for deferral of payment of the court fee and allowed the applicant company's counterclaim, referring to Articles 21 (d) and 31 (c) of the Law on State Fees («Պետական տուրքի մասին» ՀՀ օրենք).
16.  On 3 December 2002 the Commercial Court decided to join both claims and to examine them together.
17.  On 20 January 2003 the Commercial Court granted the authorities' claim and dismissed that of the applicant company. The court decided to levy on the applicant company a total of AMD 3,797,281 of tax arrears, including profit tax arrears of AMD 193,400 plus a surcharge of AMD 11,352.9 (approx. EUR 310 and EUR 18 respectively), Value Added Tax (VAT) arrears of AMD 132,610 plus a surcharge of AMD 57,839.44 and a fine of AMD 73,080 (approx. EUR 213, EUR 93 and EUR 117 respectively), and simplified tax arrears of AMD 1,919,820 plus a surcharge of AMD 304,428.66 and a fine of AMD 1,104,750 (approx. EUR 3,096, EUR 491 and EUR 1,781 respectively). In imposing the surcharges and fines, the Commercial Court referred to Article 43 of the Law on Value Added Tax («Ավելացված արժեքի հարկի մասին» ՀՀ օրենք), Articles 25 and 28 of the Law on Taxes («Հարկերի մասին» ՀՀ օրենք) and the provisions relating to the delayed payment of taxes. The amount of the unpaid court fee to be paid by the applicant company was calculated at AMD 79,946 (approx. EUR 129).
18.  On 3 February 2003 the applicant company lodged a cassation appeal. Together with the appeal, the applicant company submitted a request for deferral of payment of the court fee, claiming that the company was experiencing financial problems: the company had only AMD 770 (approx. EUR 1.2) on its books and in its bank account, both of which had been frozen.
19.  By a letter of 14 February 2003 the Court of Cassation informed the applicant company that its cassation appeal would be examined on 28 February 2003. The letter also stated that the appeal would be returned unexamined should the applicant fail to pay the court fee by 24 February 2003.
20.  By a letter of 27 February 2003 the Court of Cassation (ՀՀ վճռաբեկ դատարան) returned the applicant company's cassation appeal on the ground that it had not paid the required court fee. The judgment of the Commercial Court came into force.
21.  On 28 February 2003 the applicant company applied to the Chairman of the Court of Cassation (ՀՀ վճռաբեկ դատարանի նախագահ), requesting that its appeal be examined out of time and claiming that it was incapable of paying the court fee since the company had almost no assets and the existing ones were frozen.
22.  By a letter of 13 March 2003 the Senior Advisor to the Civil and Commercial Chamber of the Court of Cassation (ՀՀ վճռաբեկ դատարանի քաղաքացիական և տնտեսական գործերի պալատի ավագ խորհրդատու) informed the applicant company that its cassation appeal had been returned since “according to Article 70 of the Code of Civil Procedure [(CCP) (ՀՀ քաղաքացիական դատավարության օրենսգիրք)] commercial entities could not be exempted from payment of the State fee”.
23.  On 25 March 2003 enforcement proceedings were instituted and an injunction was placed on the applicant company's assets in the amount equal to the judgment debt.
24.  On 22 April 2004 the Commercial Court instituted bankruptcy proceedings in respect of the applicant company on the basis of an application lodged by the Tax Inspectorate.
25.  On 20 May 2004 the Commercial Court decided to stay those proceedings until a decision had been taken on the applicant company's application lodged with the European Court. It appears that the bankruptcy proceedings are currently still stayed.